House of Nines Design is an independent maker of foxy, high-quality headwear for stylish men and women. We sell internationally online, in retail stores across the US, and direct to customers by appointment at our studio in New York City. We use a mix of traditional and modern techniques and only the best materials, including fine fur felts, hand-woven Panama straws, and rare vintage veiling and ribbon, sourced from other small businesses and artisans. All House of Nines Design hats are unique designs individually shaped and trimmed by hand in our studio. As you can imagine, our hats are time-consuming to make, but we approach it as an art and a labor of love.

Search This Blog

Saturday, November 20, 2010

New Toy

It's used it to punch perforated letters into leather sweatbands on hats. You spin the big wooden knob in the middle, which turns a dial with letters around the outside, to select the desired letter. Then you slip the sweatband into a slot below the dial, push down on the knob like a lever, and little metal pins perforate the sweatband to create the letter. The letters come out looking like this.

When every single guy on the street used to wear a hat, lots of hats looked alike, and most theaters, nightclubs and restaurants had hat check booths to hold men's hats while they were in their establishment, it was handy to have your initials in your hat to make sure you received the right one back.

I'm happy to be able to give this tool a new useful life, and look forward to many years together marking the size into ready-to-wear hats, customer initials on custom hats, etc.